[Ch. 18] Rahman and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Global Triumph with Bombay Dreams

The interview which appears below, was originally published on Vikatan in January 2008. ©The rights to this material are reserved to the owner. English translation credits go to Aravind A.M. from the A.R. Rahman Yahoo Fans Group. If you have any concerns or comments, please send an email to info@rahmaniac.com.

In 1999, Michael Jackson planned to hold a concert series for children suffering from poverty and hunger around the world. He invited some of the best musicians from all over the world to perform with him in the show, called “Michael Jack Son and Friends.” While listening to music from artists in the Asian section, Michael was surprised to hear Rahman’s song “Ekam Satyam” and immediately invited him to participate in the program.

The two sang “Ekam Satyam” together at the Olympic Stadium in Munich, Germany in front of 60,000 spectators. Dancers Shobana and Prabudeva also performed the song, which was written in English and Sanskrit. Michael Jackson sang the English portion, while Rahman sang the rest. Other famous musicians such as Pavarotti, Stevie Wonder, Vanessa May, Boy Zone, and Alan Parsons were also present on stage.

This performance marked a significant milestone in Rahman’s career, as the applause for the song shook the German sky and he became a favorite of Michael Jackson. After winning an Oscar, Rahman visited Michael at his house to thank him for their friendly collaboration.

Following the success of “Ekam Satyam,” Rahman began traveling frequently between London, Mumbai, and Kodambakkam. He received many international opportunities and took advantage of London’s recording studios to compose songs for Tamil and Hindi films, which he uploaded to the internet.

Rahman’s next big opportunity was “Bombay Dreams,” a musical theater script set in Mumbai that was being produced by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber’s company. Webber, born in England in 1942, is known as one of the greatest fathers of Western music. He has composed music for 13 musicals and 2 films in famous theaters such as West End and Broadway and has received numerous awards including 7 Tony Awards, 3 Grammy Awards, 1 Golden Globe and Oscar, and 7 Olivier Awards. He is the owner of the Really Useful Group, one of the largest theater companies in England.

While Webber was interested in producing “Bombay Dreams,” he was unfamiliar with Indian music and wanted the play to have a blend of Asian and Western techno music. However, he was unsure if he could compose the music for it himself. One day, he saw the song “Chaiyya Chaiyya” from the film “Dil Se” on an English channel and was impressed with the music, voice, and film.

He listened to all the songs on the “Dil Se” album, including Rahman’s songs from “Roja” and others, and was surprised by Rahman’s talent. He decided that Rahman should compose the music for “Bombay Dreams” and contacted Shekhar Kapur, a friend of Rahman’s, to arrange a meeting with Rahman. Rahman flew to London with Shekhar Kapoor when Webber called.

Webber invited him to a big party, and Rahman was shocked to hear that the composer of the song ‘Chaiyya Chaiyya’ was so young. Rahman, a great fan of Webber, praised his music. Webber said, “The time has come for Asian music to reach a certain place in the world music stage, and you are the one who can do it.” Suddenly, Webber asked, “Can you compose music for my next musical?” Rahman, stunned by the pleasant shock, couldn’t answer immediately. He knew how grand Webber’s musicals were and couldn’t immediately digest the idea of composing music for one. Reluctantly, Rahman replied, “Maybe!”

Shekhar Kapur winked as if to agree. It was unusual for Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber to allow anyone else to compose music for his plays. Rahman was thinking, “Is it normal for him to call? Will we be able to complete this enormous musical task with his workload?”

Then Webber said a word to Rahman that changed everything. He said, “Europeans want to know what Indian music is…come on!” Those words bound Rahman, and he immediately agreed. “Bombay Dreams” began to come true.

While in London, Rahman worked day and night on his film work and the music of “Bombay Dreams”. He stayed in his studio and house and had no duties other than occasional meals and regular prayers. He was completely consumed by music. Rahman’s performance was gigantic.

“Bombay Dreams” premiered in London in 2002 to the delight of thousands of non-ticketed fans waiting at the entrance of the stadium. The first show was a hit, with a total of 19 songs composed by Rahman, including “Shakalakka Baby,” “Chaiyya Chaiyya” and many more. The musical ran successfully for two years in London alone before going to Broadway in America, where it was a super hit and performed 284 times. Western music also received critical acclaim.

Starting from Kodambakkam in Chennai with ‘Roja’, Rahman went to Bollywood and created new history with ‘Rangeela’, after he started doing international rounds with ‘Vande Matharam’ and ‘Bombay Dreams’, huge opportunities lined up. Hollywood, Chinese national films, advertising opportunities from global multinational companies, opportunities to hold ‘shows’ in world arenas, and more were all competing for Rahman’s attention.

Mega Maha event management companies even said, ‘We are bringing money that can be earned in 10 films in just one show.’ But Rahman denied them all. He continued to compose music for Tamil and Hindi films, such as ‘Lagaan’, ‘Kisna’, ‘Mangal Pandey’, ‘Water’, ‘Rang De Basanti’, and ‘Swades. Rahman also collected many awards during this period.

Golden Globes, Oscars, and other accolades were just a call away for Rahman, but he had to travel by other means to reach them. That path also came looking for him, and then another project knocked on the door “‘The Lord of the Rings”